


no masters or kings

by literallynoonecares



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Assassination Attempt(s), Blood Magic, Bodyguard Ben Solo, Cock Warming, Cunnilingus, Dark Rey (Star Wars), Dominant Rey (Star Wars), F/M, Sith Princess Vibes But Magic, Submissive Ben Solo, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:06:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29720427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literallynoonecares/pseuds/literallynoonecares
Summary: After assassination attempts on her life, Princess Rey Palpatine knows she has to take some risks to regain control of the throne. But can she convince the man sworn to protect her to utilize dark magic and join her on the throne?
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 22
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to [midwinterspring](https://archiveofourown.org/users/midwinterspring/works) for all their help with the beta of this fic and working through everything with me.
> 
> I have this work completely written and will post once a week and I promise it will earn that rating and those tags!!

Princess Rey Palpatine of Coruscant lays in bed far after she was supposed to make an appearance at a brunch with her grandfather, Sheev Palpatine and Regent Snoke. Instead, she ignores notifications from her comm tablet. She still hasn’t gotten dressed and her hair is let down and she lounges in her silk black nightgown. 

She knows she should be downstairs. Her grandfather has given her the right to throne acting as his proxy. He was too old and tired of using magic. He was still in charge though -- and he requested monthly meetings to find out the state of things in Coruscant. How the rebellion in Chandrila was being handled. 

But they can hardly call it a rebellion anymore. The faction that had broken off into Chandrila was engaged in a full scale war. Rey wasn’t sure how the old King’s Guard from the regime before her grandfather still existed and Chandrila and Coruscant together as one -- a relic of a time gone by before sides were drawn. Impartial and utilizing aspects from both Coruscantian and Chandrilan magic, they’re supposed to keep the peace. 

Rey doesn’t trust them. They tend to favor the Chandrilan magic techniques, citing that the Coruscantian ways were too violent, too rooted in evil, in malice. Chandrilan magic invoked more changing behavior and transformation rather than punishment. More in-line with peacekeeping.

And Rey found _that_ notion incredibly boring. What’s a fight using magic without making someone bleed or suffer?

She lets the sunshine in her bedroom through light grey curtains and she reads an old poetry book she found in her grandfather’s library. She knows he wouldn’t approve of her reading such a frivolous thing which makes her read it all the more. 

Lately, she hasn’t even been attending rituals with her coven. She barely even uses her magic at all. It reminds her too much of her mother, the High Priestess of the Coruscantian magic coven. Her parents passed away months ago in an attack on the royal family. Rey had inherited her mother’s natural ability for witchcraft and as princess her duties to her country were clear. She went to boarding school and honed her skills. Her teachers said she would be the next High Priestess just like her mother. 

And now she wishes she had never _heard_ of magic. She wished it didn’t course through her veins. Maybe if it hadn’t the witches and warlocks from Chandrila wouldn’t have killed her parents. Maybe she wouldn’t be so angry and apathetic at the same time.

They used to be part of Coruscant but Chandrilan magic users began to resent laws passed by Emperor Palpatine. And they weren’t fond of Princess Palpatine’s ways either. After restrictions on usage of Chandrilan were put into place, the Chandrilans banned together and staged a rebellion. 

Her grandfather attempted to squash the rebellion, but didn’t act fast enough and now they have their own country. And her grandfather left her in charge of fighting a war between two nations exceptionally good at spells and wards -- it’s been a stalemate for years now, even when her parents were alive -- and there’s a bloodthirsty part of her that wishes she could slay and end them all now.

She snaps out of her daydream when there’s a loud knock on her door. She slams the book shut and stuffs it in her bedside table. 

“Princess Rey?” calls the voice from the other side of her door. She flings out of bed and adjusts her comforter so it’s presentable. She steps over gowns strewn on the floor and ignores the shoes covering the dark green velvet chaise lounge at the foot of her bed.

“I’m coming! I know I’m late! But you can tell my Grandfather he can kiss my--” Rey stops herself. She notices how her voice croaks, clear she hasn’t spoken yet this morning. She moves past her sitting room and braces herself before she opens the door. She knows she doesn’t look as presentable as a princess should and she knows none of her grandfather’s aides would approve.

“Princess Rey.” 

The voice belongs to a woman with long legs and an even more intriguing face. She’s head to toe in all black, leggings and a long sleeve t-shirt clinging close to her body. She wears heeled boots and her long black hair is slicked back in a ponytail. 

Rey’s never seen her before, but she knew her grandfather had just hired new staff -- she just didn’t expect the new staff to look like _that_. 

Rey looks her up and down and instinctively grasps at an invisible robe, suddenly very aware she’s just wearing a thin black nightgown that you can definitely see through.

“Sorry, I can be down in a few minutes,” Rey apologizes. She turns her back to the woman. 

Rey doesn’t make it two feet back into her room before she feels the woman’s hands on her neck suffocating her. 

🥀🌹🥀

A man with a masked face leads the charge. He attacks with vicious magic, almost impossible for the King’s Guard to counteract with wards. It’s no use in fighting Coruscant anymore. 

Benjamin Organa-Solo wakes up with a start. Another nightmare that jostles him awake so violently he’s worried he’s startled his roommate. He turns to Tai’s bed and sees no signs of disturbance. Ben breathes deeply, attempting an old King’s Guard meditation practice to calm his mind. He stares at the empty dark walls of their quarters. He focuses on the most boring theoretical magic principles he can think of to clear his thoughts.

It doesn’t work. He sighs and gets out of bed, slipping on his shoes and inches out of the room so he doesn’t disturb Tai. 

He makes his way down the dark corridors of the King’s Guard Academy and wonders if anyone else lies awake, plagued with nightmares or visions of a masked faceless man demolishing the King’s Guard and Chandrila in the process. 

He suspects not as he enters an empty dining room and kitchen. He looks around at the portraits hanging in the dining room and it almost makes him sick enough to stop eating. 

His father, mother, and uncle all look down on him. 

What a disappointment he must be. 

His father, Han Solo -- the legendary Coruscantian war hero from the before times and current Chandrilan General. While Han didn’t use magic and wasn’t quite as respected as the others, he held his own in battle. 

“What good is a General who can’t defend us?” Ben’s heard recruits ask. 

Part of him was inclined to ask the same question. 

He hasn’t spoken to his father in two years, and the portrait just serves as a memory of broken promises and a family that Ben fears will never understand him. 

He’s always felt like a disappointment to his mother, Leia Organa, whose portrait captures her warm, kind eyes almost _too_ well, Ben thinks. 

Senator by the time she was his age and leader of the Chandrilan coven not long after. 

Ben was sixteen when Chandrilans took matters into their own hands. He remembers it so well, his mother rushing down the hallway of their estate -- her hair a mess and her normally kind eyes frantic.

_“We cannot stand idly by as they move toward a magic coven that encourages such venomous magic. We cannot let them take away our rights. Our hope. Do you understand, Ben? We have to run. And we have to fight.”_

_”Yes, mom. I understand. Where are we going to go?”_

_”To the north. Past King’s Guard territory.”_

_”Isn’t that...?”_

_”No Man’s Land, yes. We’re going to take it,” Leia says._

_”Do we have the power for that?” Ben questions._

_“We have to have hope.”_

And then his uncle, ever present and looming over his entire life. After the Chandrilan rebellion was semi-successful, Ben’s nightmares featuring the call to perform Coruscantian magic were stronger than ever. It scared his mother and his father. He knows that. He heard the whispers down the hallway when they thought he was asleep. 

That’s why they shipped him off to his uncle Luke Skywalker, head of the King’s Guard Academy. 

Luke Skywalker became the leader of the King’s Guard after successful Knight service for the Coruscanti government at the beginning of his sister’s senatorial term. Once the Knights discovered how talented Luke was with magic and how apathetic he was towards the rising politician Sheev Palpatine, they encouraged him to join the King’s Guard instead. 

With No Man’s Land and the demons that had inhabited it to the north and Coruscant to the south, the King’s Guard remained impartial, fair bringers of justice to the realm. They participated in battle only enough to restore balance -- and then they’d excuse themselves. They would provide protection for either group as they saw fit. The council would always vote on actions before any spells were allowed. 

It was the life Luke Skywalker craved. 

And then there’s Ben Solo. Forced to be here even though he _hates_ everything the King’s Guard stands for. Especially after the Chandrilan witches conquered No Man’s Land and made deals with the demons, it just seemed pointless to Ben to be a part of something so _impartial_ when they made that deal and how Coruscantians try to kill Chandrilans using evil magic every day. 

Benjamin Solo has morals, thank you very much. 

And he wants to stop having enticing nightmares of him using Coruscantian magic. And he wants it to stop feeling _right_.

He takes a sip of a calming potion when Luke traipses in the door. 

“Couldn’t sleep?” Luke asks him. 

“What tipped you off?”

Luke chuckles. 

“I have to tell you something. You’ll be briefed on it tomorrow morning, but I wanted you to have a little warning,” Luke says.

“What’s happening?” 

“There was an attack on the Coruscantian princess, Rey Palpatine.”

“Palpatine’s daughter?” Ben asks.

“Granddaughter. She’s on the throne though.”

“The twenty-four year old?”

“Yes,” Luke nods. 

“I’ve heard she’s even more evil than her grandfather. More powerful, too,” Ben notes.

“I think the stories may be an exaggeration,” Luke says.

“Kanan Jarrus was her guard years ago and said she _bit_ him once for looking at her the wrong way. A total brat.”

“Ah, no. That sounds about right.”

“Charming.”

“I can think of someone that reminds me of,” Luke smirks. 

“I haven’t bitten anyone since I was twelve,” Ben says defensively. 

“Ah, how could I have mischaracterized you so much.” Sarcasm drips out of Luke’s voice. 

“What happened to her?” 

“She kicked her assailant’s ass enough she survived, but the assassin got away.”

“Was it one of ours?” Ben asks.

“King’s Guard? No.”

“God, Luke. You know I mean Chandrilan.”

“I am not Chandrilan,” Luke says firmly.

“Your family is."

“In any case, it was a No Man’s Land demon,” Luke says. Ben notices his deflection. 

“Who?”

“Bazine Nadel.”

“God. She’s ruthless. I fought her once. I have the scar from permanent magic damage to prove it,” Ben replies.

“And Rey Palpatine kicked her ass.”

“She’s powerful then?” Ben inquires.

“Just like her mother was,” Luke comments.

“Will she assume the role of High Priestess in addition to princess?”

“If she survives, I assume so,” Luke says with a sigh.

Ben falls silent. He absentmindedly rubs his left side where he has a dark circle. Marked forever by the demon Bazine Nedal. 

“So why are you telling me all this?” Ben finally asks. 

“There’s more credible threats of No Man’s Land demons revolting against both Coruscant and Chandrila. They plan to strike Coruscant first. Princess Rey’s life is still in danger.”

Ben puts two and two together. 

“And they’re asking for our help,” Ben clarifies.

“Yes.”

“And they need King’s Guards?”

“Just one. They don’t want to alert the Coruscantian public and cause riots. It’s a low profile bodyguard job.”

“Who are you sending?” Ben inquires.

“We’ll talk about it in the morning. Your calming potion should be working by now. Get some rest,” Luke leaves the table and places his hand on his nephew’s shoulder for a brief moment before leaving Ben alone with more thoughts than he had before. 

He’d never sleep now. 

🥀🌹🥀

It takes Rey a split second to realize what’s happening. She grounds herself in her power and flips her assailant to the ground. Rey mutters a spell under her breath but the woman blocks it. Rey feels a sharp pain in her thigh and realizes she was stabbed. She runs backward and puts space between her and the assailant.

Rey recognizes the assassin’s spell wasn’t a Chandrilan or a Coruscantian spell -- it was an ancient No Man’s Land demon’s protection -- _what the fuck is happening?_

She scans through her memory until she remembers a spell her mother taught her when she was young and the rebellion was just starting. It’s hard to cast spells against demons, but there were a few spells she could use. The assailant launches herself at Rey but Rey catches her and strangles her. 

The woman breaks out of Rey’s hold and hits Rey in the arm with a vase on her dresser. Rey feels blood trickle down her side and instead of being angry, she swipes at the blood with her fingers and uses it to cast a stronger blood spell against the assassin. 

The assassin’s face is slashed and she doubles over in pain. 

“Who are you?” Rey asks, her foot pushing down on the assassin’s stomach, aggravating the injuries. 

“It’s a job. I was hired to kill you,” she croaks out as she struggles against Rey. 

“By who?” Rey grits out through clenched teeth. Rey pushes her foot further into the woman’s abdomen. 

“I will not tell you,” she replies, and Rey immediately lets her foot up and steps on her neck. 

“Answer me or I’ll kill you,” Rey states. 

The woman does not reply. Instead, she whispers a spell and disappears out of thin air. 

Rey screeches and kicks the empty space where the assassin just laid. 

Three aides to her grandfather burst in. 

Rey knows she looks worse for wear. Her silk nightgown is torn at the bottom and borders on indecent. She assumes her hair is a mess and there’s a stab wound on her thigh and her arm still bleeds. 

“Princess Rey, what happened? We detected a disturbance in our protection forcefield.”

“Someone attacked me. A demon, I think. They disappeared into a different realm. Only demons can do that.”

“We’ll get you medical attention and look into this,” one aide says. 

“She had long black hair. Long legs,” Rey stammers, almost in a daze. 

“It’s okay, Princess. We’ll escort you to the medical station and gather evidence. We’ll alert your grandfather.”

“Oh, perfect,” Rey says sarcastically. She reluctantly takes the aide’s hand and stumbles down the stairs to the medical station.

She answers the doctor’s questions and they take samples from her thigh and arm. 

She zones out and barely remembers any details from the conversation.

Her grandfather bursts through the door with Regent Snoke in tow. Rey grimaces at Snoke’s presence -- there was something about him that made Rey’s stomach churn. He always pushed her too hard in training and didn’t trust her to make political decisions. 

Her grandfather doesn’t care either. When she was eighteen and her parents were on a trip to No Man’s Land, her grandfather had Snoke leave her in the Southern Woods of Coruscant for four days without food or water, telling her she had to make her way back. 

She barely survived. But she did. Because she always does. She doesn’t have a choice. She wouldn’t let Snoke break her like that. She channeled all the magic she had flowing through her and made it back to the palace. More eager and merciless than ever before. 

And now she regrets not killing the assailant sooner. She shouldn’t have let her get away. She should have shown this woman no mercy.

“I have my informants in Chandrila on it. It looks like it was a demon assassin named Bazine Nadel,” her grandfather informs her. 

“Why did she try to kill me?”

“A coup. I’m afraid Chandrila and the demons of No Man’s Land have conspired to try and murder you to take your place on the throne. You have no heirs. It would be madness.”

“Emperor, this is why I told you years ago you needed to find her a suitor,” Snoke interrupts. 

Palpatine puts his hand up to silence Snoke. 

“I have some ideas. We will be gathering the covens to place more protection spells around the palace. I’m working on something else as well. You must stay in the palace until this is over,” Palpatine commands. 

“What? I can’t only stay in here. That’s cruel,” she argues. 

“Would you rather die?” Palpatine asks her pointedly.

She considers for a moment. 

She narrows her eyes. 

“I’d rather die fighting than die a coward.”

🥀🌹🥀

Leia rushes into the academy after Luke sent her a message through their comm tablet. 

“He requested the King’s Guard?” Leia asks without any pretense. 

“Just one. Low profile. They haven’t told the princess, but there’s several credible threats against her life. They want just one person to protect her. A personal bodyguard.”

“Who are you thinking of sending?” Leia questions. 

“He requested Ben,” Luke says quickly. Like maybe if he spoke so fast Leia wouldn’t hear. Wouldn’t understand.

“What?”

“He needs someone familiar with fighting demons and who has a vague knowledge of Coruscantian magic.”

“And he thought of Ben?” Leia asks skeptically.

“He did,” Luke confirms.

“What are your thoughts?” Leia asks.

“I’m obviously concerned. I don’t know if he still has those nightmares or visions, but I worry that being surrounded by Coruscantian magic will turn him to their side.”

“I think he’s much stronger now than he was at eighteen,” Leia says.

“Leia, you know how susceptible he was. It was terrifying.”

“Have you told him yet?”

“No. I wanted to get your thoughts first,” Luke admits.

Leia sits down, opens her comm tablet. She reads the report again. 

“You need to talk to him about it. You know he’d be angry if he knew you told me first.”

“I know. We’ll keep it our secret. The council will talk with him in the morning.”

“I’m worried, Luke. I trust Palpatine as far as I can throw him,” Leia says.

“And I don’t believe his granddaughter is much better,” Luke shakes his head. 

🥀🌹🥀

Tai shakes Ben awake and Ben nearly falls off his bed. 

“Your comm tablet has been beeping non-stop. They added a meeting with the council to your schedule,” Tai shrugs. 

“What?” Ben asks groggily. 

“It’s in an hour.”

“God,” Ben groans. 

“What did you do now, Solo?” Tai has a smug look on his face. 

“Nothing,” Ben insists. 

“You’re telling me you’re being called to the full council and you haven’t fucked something up?”

“Not that I’m aware of.” It’s not like he could tell Tai what Luke mentioned last night. 

_Oh, nothing. I think I might be going to Coruscant today to be a bodyguard for the Princess. I think I might be fucked up forever because of it. That’s if they let me because they don’t trust me to not use Coruscantian magic..._

Ben sits up and swings his legs over the bed. He rubs his temples. 

“Well, good luck,” Tai offers him a sympathetic glance as he leaves their room. 

Ben forces himself off the bed and takes a shower. He lets the water run down his back for too long until the water turns cold.

He’s too lost in thoughts that barely form coherently. He forces himself to not think _too_ hard about anything in particular. As clear of a head as he’ll ever get.

He shivers as he wraps a towel around himself. There’s a sense of dread in his bones. He knows he’s not the perfect King’s Guard -- and he knows he doesn’t actually believe in their policies -- but is that reason enough to kick him out? And what did any of this have to do with what Luke mentioned last night?

Ben dresses himself in his grey uniform, shrugging on the pants that are too tight. He places a pin on his lapel which signifies his rank amongst the King’s Guard. If he had to face the entire council, he had to make sure he looks the part. 

He walks down the hallway and feels like a lamb being led to the slaughter. 

_He had a bad feeling about this._

The tall ornate doors open automatically when Ben approaches them. It nearly knocks him off his feet but he stabilizes himself. 

“Step forward, Benjamin,” Luke tells him. 

Ben looks around at the room -- the entire thirty person council in their seats look at him intently and seem to be surveying him. He wishes he could slink out of his skin and disappear. 

Instead, he follows his uncle’s instructions. 

“You’re not in trouble, Solo,” one of the council members says. 

He knows they expect him to relax, but he’s still on edge. He nods, but doesn’t adjust his posture.

“Your service as a member of the King’s Guard has been requested by Emperor Sheev Palpatine.”

Ben tries his best not to look his uncle in the eye. He knows he can’t keep a straight face. He cannot show any panic. 

“The Emperor has specifically requested me? For what?”

“His granddaughter Rey was attacked by Bazine Nadel. There are more credible threats against the royal family from No Man’s Land. He will not tell his granddaughter about the threats. Discretion is of the utmost importance.”

“Isn’t she a talented Coruscantian witch?” Ben asks despite himself. He should know better. He should defer to them. Let them talk. Answer their questions and ask them none. 

But he’s never been one to abide the status quo.

“She is. But the Emperor understands you have experience with demons, Chandrilan magic, and Coruscantian magic.”

Silence falls over the council, the previous chatter ceasing. 

“I don’t have experience with Coruscantian magic,” Ben states coldly. 

“You cannot lie to the council. We know about your affinity for the magic.”

“I have only used it a handful of times. I have stopped the desire to use it and gotten help for the visions. Luke--“

The head councilman puts his hand up to stop Ben. 

“We understand. We have voted to approve your mission to Coruscant.”

Ben can’t bring himself to speak. His head spins and there’s a voice inside his head that hisses, “ _Y_ _es, go to Coruscant. Learn the malice and the viciousness. Let it grow in your heart. Destroy the King’s Guard. Destroy everything.”_

“Of course, a few raised concerns. Your uncle is concerned this will drag you into a dark place. Your mother thinks we should give you a chance. The vote was close.”

“Ben, let me explain.” Luke stands from his chair and clears his throat. “I worry that only being surrounded by Coruscantian magic will be detrimental to your path for the King’s Guard. I worry it will cause you to spiral. I want to encourage you that you have the option to say no. You are not required to follow through with this mission.”

“I can handle it. I can prove myself,” Ben says, not skipping a beat. 

“Are you certain?” Luke asks. 

“Absolutely. Send me to Coruscant.” Now he had something to prove. 

“I will let the Emperor know,” Luke acquiesces. He looks towards Leia and she nods.

“When do I leave?”

“Twenty-four hours.”

“I’ll be ready,” Ben replies.

Ben turns and exits the doors before the council can say anything further. 

Luke rushes after him, jogging to catch up. 

“Ben. _Ben_!” Luke calls. 

Ben turns on the spot and Luke nearly runs into him. 

“I know you don’t trust me. I know you expect the worst from me. But I was requested for this mission. I was voted in for this mission. And I’m going,” Ben says defiantly.

“I am just worried about you,” Luke tells him.

“Clearly, since you spoke to my mother about something that doesn’t concern her at all.”

“I wanted her opinion.”

Ben scoffs. 

“I’m going, Luke. You cannot stop me. The council approved it, anyway.” Ben knows that’s the way to get Luke to stop. He’d always care what the council thinks.

“I can only hope you prove me wrong,” Luke says with a sigh. 

🥀🌹🥀

“A _bodyguard_?! From the King’s Guard? Are you kidding?” Rey seethes, gripping the chair in her grandfather’s study tightly. 

“Just one. Extra protection from an unbiased source. We don’t know who ordered this attack,” Palpatine replies coolly. 

“Are you saying you think it could be someone from Coruscant?” Rey questions.

“You’re the youngest leader and a bit divisive,” he offers as an explanation. 

Rey frowns. Palpatine’s lips purse together. 

“I am not divisive.”

“Many don’t believe you should be on the throne.”

“I am the rightful heir to the throne,” Rey states.

She lets go of the chair and crosses her arms. 

“I understand. I know you are. But there are _some_ who don’t trust you.”

“I don’t want a bodyguard,” Rey says. She tries not to make it sound like she’s a whiny child but she can handle herself. She doesn’t need this.

“You’re getting one. I hand picked him.”

Rey internally falters at that. She knows by now she can’t show any emotion toward her grandfather. She knew she wouldn’t like anyone her grandfather handpicked. They’d be guaranteed to be a self-righteous asshole who falls in line. 

Quite the opposite of Rey. 

“And Rey?”

“Yes, Grandfather?”

“You need to start going to the coven meetings. You need to be a leader. You cannot sit idly by. Instill fear in their hearts. Maybe a ritual sacrifice would help them see that,” he suggests. 

“Of course, Grandfather. I will attend them. With my bodyguard,” she exaggerates. 

“Go train with Regent Snoke. I will tell him to ensure the sarcasm is drilled out of you.”

“Yes, Grandfather,” she deadpans. 

She leaps out of the chair and bows before shuffling out of the room, mentally preparing herself to see Snoke. 

🥀🌹🥀

“You’re late,” Snoke says as Rey stumbles into the training arena. 

“I apologize, Regent Snoke. I had to change,” Rey says with her head down. 

“No excuses, you know that.”

“I apologize,” Rey says.

“My knights will engage you now. Non lethal spells. Anything else is allowed.”

Snoke beckons his six knights into the room. Rey braces herself. She runs through blood spells in her mind as she knows they’ll be able to draw blood from her -- six against one was never fair. 

She reminds herself of wards and protections, but it goes out of her mind when the first knight sends a spell against her. She falls to the ground with a thud and it takes her a few moments before she gathers herself. By then, another knight has slashed her arm open. 

She hears Snoke from the back of the room taunt her -- _how disappointing she is, how she doesn’t deserve her position on the throne_ \-- and she wipes her blood on her fingers and begins casting blood spells. 

Something feral bubbles up deep within her as she begins torturing and injuring through the knights with ease. She’s down to two knights who haven’t been totally incapacitated when Snoke halts the spar. 

“That’s enough. It took you entirely too long to fight back. You are weak, Princess.”

Rey resists the urge to use a spell against Snoke, or spit on him, or punch him, or _anything_ \--

“I am not weak,” she grits out. 

“Do not kid yourself. And do not think that just because they’re sending a King’s Guard to protect you that we will cease our training,” Snoke tells her.

“I didn’t think that.”

“In fact, your training will only increase in frequency. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Regent Snoke.”

“Do not force me to send you to the Southern Woods for days again, Princess. I will not hesitate to send you out of Coruscant if you do not improve,” Snoke threatens.

“I understand,” she says plainly. 

“You need to be even more villainous, Princess Rey. The people will not surrender to your rule unless they are afraid of you,” he says.

“I think people are plenty afraid of me,” she shoots back. 

“Then why was an assassin able to make their way into your bedroom?” He counters. 

“Why did they want to kill me at all?” Rey asks.

🥀🌹🥀

Rey ruminates on Snoke’s words all night. She nurses her own wounds, refusing to go to the medical station. 

Another thing she had to prove to herself. Her complete independence. She could not trust her grandfather to do what’s right for her or Coruscant. She could not trust Regent Snoke. She couldn’t even trust her own subjects. 

She was all alone. It made her turn more inward and ferocious than ever before. She wouldn’t let anyone take her power from her. She knew she had to make an appearance at the coven that night.

She had to make them fear her _and_ her magic.

Rey summons her chief of staff to her bedroom. 

A knock on her door. 

Logically, she knows it’s her chief of staff. There’s still a chill that runs down her spine when she opens the door. 

“Rose, I’ll attend the coven tonight. Can you add that to my schedule? You should be there as well,” Rey says sparing no pretense. 

“You haven’t been in months,” Rose points out. 

“You’re correct.”

“Why are you going now?” Rose asks.

“I need to make an appearance.”

“Did your grandfather tell you you have to?” Rose knows Rey too well. It’s been too long as her right hand woman. 

Rey rolls her eyes. 

“Yes. But I have to ensure the coven knows I’m in charge. They have to understand that everyone in Coruscant answers to me.”

“They do,” Rose says.

“There was an assassination attempt, Rose.”

“I’m aware.”

“Not everyone understands it, clearly. I have to make a stand,” Rey says. She’s flustered. Rose tries to course correct.

“Do you not think the reforms in the lower levels we passed last month makes a stand?” Rose inquires. 

“I think that made me decidedly less popular.”

“I’ll let the covenstead know we’re coming so they can prepare security.”

“We don’t need security,” Rey insists.

“Aren’t you getting a King’s Guard bodyguard soon?”

“Don’t remind me, Rose. I’ll bring my spellbook. I don’t want security,” Rey says firmly.

“Okay. As you wish, Princess,” Rose says sarcastically. 

Rose was Rey’s oldest childhood friend -- their parents had known each other for years before they were born. They grew up together and once Rey assumed the throne, there was no one she trusted more to have by her side than Rose. 

And Rose was the only one allowed to make snide comments to Rey without getting slashed in the face. But Rey had to admit she appreciated how Rose kept her in line, and it’s hard to begrudge her anything else. 

“Help me get into this,” Rey requests, nodding to the jumpsuit laid out on the chaise. 

“Of course.”

Rey shimmies out of her current dress and pulls on the pant legs and turns for Rose to zip up the back. It’s black with a low plunging neckline. 

“Ah, you’re planning on making _that_ kind of a statement,“ Rose laughs. 

Rey swipes on bright red lipstick and blots her lips.

“You’re really going for it, aren’t you?” Rose asks.

“Have to make sure Kaydel knows even though she’s High Priestess, I still run Coruscant,” Rey says with a smile.

“Let’s go then.”

🥀🌹🥀

Rey struts into the covenstead doing her best to channel her mother’s energy. Her mother wouldn’t have taken any prisoners or let people treat her like Snoke has treated Rey. 

And Rey’s mother sure as hell would have raised a much bigger tantrum if there was an assassination attempt on any member of the royal family. 

“Good evening,” Rey greets everyone. There’s whispers in the room, everyone staring at her and talking in hushed tones. She holds her head high, doesn’t look anywhere except at the center of the room. Rose piles in after her and takes a seat unceremoniously. 

Kaydel snaps to it and crosses the room to welcome Rey. 

“I didn’t know you were coming to the coven tonight, Princess. You haven’t come in a long time,” Kaydel says.

“I do not answer to you, Kaydel. I am the ruler of Coruscant and very busy. I can attend coven whenever I see fit.”

“Of course, Princess. We’re glad to have you. Your presence will greatly increase our coven’s powers.”

“Of course it will,” Rey states.

Kaydel turns to the rest of the room. 

“Everyone, please take your seats in the circle.”

Everyone shuffles together and Rey sits at the head of the circle -- she knows there’s not _really_ a head of a circle, but wherever she sat was where the power was. And everyone stared at her. Mesmerized by the fact she showed up. Mesmerized how she talked back to the High Priestess. 

“We are lucky to be joined tonight by the Princess of Coruscant. Thank you for coming. And fresh from her journey past the Southern Woods to Takonda, our emeritus High Priestess May Kanata is with us tonight,” Kaydel gestures to the door and Maz walks in. 

She’s short and tiny, with glasses far too big for her face. And here she was, making an entrance no one would forget. 

Rey takes a mental note to arrive fashionably late next time. 

“Tonight, we will be casting protection spells over Coruscant, specifically the capitol and the palace. After the...incident, the Emperor has asked all covens to renew protection spells and wards.”

“What about those outside the city walls?” Jannah interrupts.

“We have protection spells there, too,” Kaydel replies flatly. Her mouth curved into a stern frown, a warning. 

“If the protection spells against the capitol failed, wouldn’t those have as well?” Jannah continues.

“We’ve been asked by the Emperor,” Kaydel states. 

“But the Coruscantian citizens in the woods--“ Someone else interjects.

“--Enough.” Kaydel raises a hand and cuts them off. 

Rose gives a nod to Rey, encouraging her to speak. 

“Our protection spells are powerful enough to cover all of Coruscant. Or at least they were when my mother was High Priestess. Are your spells not powerful enough, Kaydel?” Rey says icily. Rose winces and Rey knows that’s not what Rose wanted her to say, but she didn’t care. 

Rey was playing every card she had. 

Kaydel stammers, caught off guard. 

“It’s okay, Kaydel. I’ll show you what my mother taught me,” Rey says.

Rey begins the spells, spilling her own blood and chanting. Kaydel looks stunned. Maz looks pleased. The rest of the session goes off without much fighting, and Kaydel leaves before everyone clears the room. 

“Not very High Priestess-y, is it?” Rey snickers to Rose. 

“You embarrassed her,” Rose whispers.

“She deserved it,” Rey defends. 

“Did she?”

“Yes, she’s been undermining me since we were children. If I wasn’t such a wreck after my parents died and if I didn’t have to be princess you _know_ I would have been High Priestess,” Rey says.

“That’s true,” a voice cuts in. Maz appears next to them in all her glory. 

“It’s nice to see you, Maz.”

“You look very serious, Rey. And tired. You need to rest,” Maz says, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Hard to rest when someone tried to kill you in your bedroom.”

“And you’re not capable of a sleeping potion? I just heard you taunt your abilities to be better than the High Priestess of the most powerful coven in Coruscant.”

“You know what I mean, Maz,” Rey replies.

“Welcome back,” Rose interjects. 

“How was Takonda?” Rey asks Maz.

“They were visited by Chandrilans. And demons. The Chandrilans seem to think they’ll be taking over Coruscant soon,” Maz informs them.

“What did you tell them?” Rose asks. 

“That it wasn’t true. That Rey Palpatine is stronger than you know.”

“Thanks, Maz,” Rey says and she seems a bit embarrassed. 

“I sense unease around your spirit. Broken pieces. It’s not just from your parents. I know what that grief looks like,” Maz says. Her eyes scan Rey’s body, concern growing.

“It’s probably all the training with Snoke,” Rose asserts. 

“Rose!” Rey scolds. 

“What?”

“We’re not supposed to talk about that. He’ll know,” Rey says.

“What has Snoke made you do?” Maz asks.

“I can’t talk about it, Maz. But I’m fine. I’m getting stronger. I _am_ the most powerful witch in Coruscant.”

“And at what cost?”

“Pain is instruction,” Rey parrots Snoke’s favorite teaching. 

“Your mother would be disappointed to hear that. Pain isn’t instruction. Pain is punishment. Pain is anger. Why do you think we use it against our enemies? We do not inflict it on ourselves. We inflict it on _them_ ,” Maz replies.

“Snoke has different views. And I don’t have a choice.”

“My dear, you’re the ruler of Coruscant. You sit on the throne. You have a choice. Use it.”

“I understand. Did you hear my grandfather has enlisted the help of the King’s Guard?” Rey asks.

“No, but that surprises me. He’s never been a fan and I never thought they liked us much either. I never took much stock in their impartial unbiased ways. It’s impossible to be unbiased."

“They’re sending me a bodyguard. A babysitter! It’s like I’m twelve,” Rey complains.

“I said she’ll run him off within a week,” Rose says.

“Three days, max,” Maz counters Rose. 

“Bet?”

“Fifteen credits,” Maz offers.

“Deal,” Rose smiles. 

“You’ll both lose if I can help it. I’m trying to make sure he doesn’t come at all.”

“Good luck with that,” Rose scoffs. 

“My grandfather cannot win every battle with me. I have to win some eventually.”

“Ah, I believe your game is rigged, dear,” Maz says, placing her hand on Rey’s shoulder. 

“I’ll see you both soon. Good luck with the King’s Guard. Don’t let him brainwash you with Guardian or Chandrilan magic.”

“I won’t, Maz,” Rey says.

Rey and Rose realize they’re the last ones in the covenstead. 

“Successful night, overall I think,” Rey muses. 

“Kaydel is definitely afraid of you.”

“I think they all were,” Rey shrugs. 

“Let’s hope your bodyguard fares the same way.”

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Ben spends the week preparing to leave for Coruscant by studying. He studies Guardian magic and Chandrilan magic. 

He skips the parts of the text about Coruscantian magic. He pushes back the voices in his head that call him to flip to those pages and consume the evil. 

He doesn’t tell anyone this, obviously. Though he’s afraid Tai and Poe _can_ tell. 

“There’s something off with you,” Poe points out. 

“I’m nervous. Can you blame me?” Ben asks defensively.

“It’s something else.”

“I still need to pack my clothes, and we still don’t know what kind of threat the royal family is facing, and I’m going to be all alone.”

“Do you think you can handle it?” Poe asks, and the air is sucked out of the room. 

“He means the threat. Not...” Tai fills in. 

“I know what he means, Tai. I’ll be fine. Listen, I know I’m not the perfect King’s Guard. I don’t even believe in half the things my uncle preaches. But I understand my duty. And I have to prove myself.”

“It’s not good to be motivated just because you need to prove something to your uncle,” Poe says. 

“It’s not to my uncle. It’s to me,” Ben states.

_And to the voices in my head. The evil that lies in my chest, clawing to get out. To everything I’ve fucked up and lost._

“When do you leave?”

“In an hour,” Ben responds. 

“Take this,” Poe says, and hands him an amulet. 

“It’s one of my lucky amulets. For protection. Charmed by a Chandrilan wizard. Don’t tell your uncle I have them.”

“I won’t,” Ben smiles a genuine smile for the first time in a while and hugs his best friend. 

“Keep your comm tablet on,” Tai says. 

“We’ll still be able to contact you.”

“I know. I will.”

“If you need us we’ll be there,” Tai tells him.

“Thank you,” Ben says sincerely.

“Benjamin,” Luke knocks on the door.

“Come in,” Ben yells. 

“It’s time to start packing your things. Your escort leaves in an hour and it’s a mess in here.”

“Please don’t chastise me like I’m a teenager. I’m thirty-one.”

“And you’re acting like a sixteen year old. Poe, Tai get out of here. He doesn’t need any more distractions. Meditate, focus, and pack. Meet at the foyer in an hour.”

“Yes, sir,” Ben mocks. 

“And no more childish tones,” Luke warns. 

“Of course. All seriousness from here on out.”

It’s a decently long journey to Coruscant, and Ben wishes he could sleep the entire time. Instead, he stares out the window of the train and watches the changes of landscape. 

And thinks about how much he wants to give into the baleful tendencies he feels deep in his mind, in his soul. 

It was a bad idea to go to Coruscant, where he’d be surrounded by it. 

But that’s why he has to go. He has to prove to himself he won’t succumb to Coruscantian ways. He’ll protect the princess, help the emperor figure out who is behind the assassination attempt, and then leave. And maybe Luke wouldn’t keep him on such a tight leash anymore. 

He’s shaken out of his daydreams by one of his escorts when they’re close to Coruscant’s city center. Ben’s never actually been to Coruscant before. He’s seen videos on his comm tablet and he’s seen photographs, but he’s never set foot outside of Chandrila and the surrounding areas before. It disturbs him, though how familiar it all feels to him. 

Just from his dreams. 

_Nightmares_ , he gently corrects himself. 

They’re not dreams.

The palace isn’t what he expected though. It looms over them as they pull up. It’s dark and forbidding, colored only with red and black, the royal colors of Coruscant. There’s a moat that surrounds the palace and the spires reach higher than Ben’s ever seen a building. It intimidates him and he knows they’ve accomplished their goal. 

Don’t fuck with the royal family of Coruscant. They’ll take no prisoners and it’ll be a painful end, he was always warned as a child by classmates. It was well established that the Coruscantian government knew how menacing they were and they leaned into it. 

That’s why there’s no photos of the princess not wearing black. Or of her smiling. 

They cross the bridge and Ben looks out over the moat. He wonders fleetingly if he doesn’t succeed if the Emperor would throw him in there, left to the creatures below. Or would he be punished in a much more sinister way? He shakes it off, reminding himself that he was going to find out who tried to assassinate the princess and mitigate any future attacks. He’d go home and the council would be proud. He’d be let on a looser leash. 

He had to have faith and optimism. It was the only way through.

His mind blurs as he walks through the entryway to the palace. It’s ornate and decorated with a style he’s never seen before. Red, gold, and black are everywhere -- statues that are taller than him and portraits whose eyes seem to follow you look down on him.

“You’ll be staying in the palace, in the same wing as the princess,” one of the aides who introduced himself as Mitaka says. Ben noted that much. He figured it was easier if he knew their names. 

“I’ll be one of your liaisons. If you need anything, please ping my comm tablet.”

Ben nods. 

“I’ll show you to your room.”

Ben moves to grab his suitcases but one of the butlers grabs them instead. 

“This way,” Mitaka says. He leads Ben up a grand staircase and at the top Ben notices a portrait of the royal family. It’s the emperor and the princess, with the princesses’ deceased parents. His heart hurts for her for a moment. He heard about their death, of course. The entire world did. She was so young and then thrust into the most power out of everyone in the world. Grief is a strange thing. Ben knows it all too well. He knows the sting of tears in your eyes when you’re trying to save face. He knows the pit in your stomach. He knows the tightness in your chest.

He wonders if the princess feels any of that or is she emotionless, like so many of the Coruscantian. Like they preach to preserve your strength and ability to hurt others. He wouldn’t wish that existence on anyone. Ben was certain to feel was to be alive. 

After a few more staircases and winding hallways, they make it to Ben’s new accommodations. 

“Princess Rey’s quarters are across the hall, right over there. She has three rooms adjoining along with her own bathroom. Emperor Palpatine has requested you sweep the rooms and the palace three times a day.”

“Of course,” Ben hears himself reply. There’s so much new information and stimulation to take in he feels as if he’s on autopilot. 

“The princess will be awake shortly. You’re expected to meet her in the sitting room in two hours,” Mitaka says.

“Where is the sitting room?”

“Downstairs, second level. Next to her grandfather’s study. You will have a full tour later this evening. Until then, feel free to get acquainted with your quarters.”

Mitaka closes the door behind him and Ben’s left in silence with his own thoughts for the first time in too long. 

He hates it. 

He pulls out his comm tablet and sends messages to Luke, Tai, and Poe letting them know he had made it safely to Coruscant. He examines his room and marvels at the space he has all to himself. He hasn’t had this much room since he was a young boy. He’s shared a room with Tai at the academy for years and it’s too close of quarters to breathe. 

Now, he has a sitting area and a bedroom. And his own bathroom. 

The Coruscant royal family knows how to treat its staff, at least. 

He catches up on the news on the comm tablet and tosses it to the side when the conflicts become too much to bear. He unpacks his things and realizes how little he has compared to the closet size. He figures the royal family would require him to get Coruscantian clothes anyway. He’d stick out like a sore thumb anywhere in Coruscant, but especially near the royal family. 

An alarm goes off his comm tablet and he jumps. He has ten minutes to get to the sitting room. He looks at himself in the mirror. He looks a little worse for wear, his hair messy and dark circles under his eyes. He brushes out his hair and flattens wrinkles on his clothes. 

He rushes downstairs and finds he beat the princess to the sitting room. He lets out a sigh of relief and desperately wants to collapse in one of the chairs, but he doesn’t let himself. It would look too unprofessional and he had to make a good first impression on Princess Rey if he wanted to prove himself. 

The doors to the sitting room swing open as Princess Rey struts in -- and that’s absolutely what she does, he thinks. It’s more than just walking. It’s seductive and powerful and he can’t look away -- and Ben understands why so many leaders bend to Princess Rey’s will. 

It seemed daunting not to, but he knew what the task at hand meant. 

🥀🌹🥀

Rey and Rose lay on the couch in Rey’s private living room and look through the news on the comm tablet. 

“There is _nothing_ about me attending coven. Only Maz. Fuck, maybe my grandfather is right. I should do a ritual sacrifice to get headlines.”

“I’m not sure that’s a great idea,” Rose counters. 

“Rose, if you’re not careful you’ll be the ritual sacrifice,” Rey says.

“Shut up,” Rose swats at Rey. 

“I don’t want the bodyguard to come today.”

“You don’t have a choice,” Rose states.

“When does he arrive?”

“He already has.”

“What?” Rey jolts, sitting upright. 

“He got here an hour ago. We meet with him in an hour in the sitting room. It’s on your schedule,” Rose says.

Rey’s nonplussed and paces. 

“I thought he was coming later.”

“You slept in late,” Rose points out. 

“I need to get ready,” Rey states. 

“What, going to intimidate him with a low cut jumpsuit and red lipstick like you did with Kaydel? He’s a member of the King’s Guard, Rey. You’re not going to throw him off his game because you’re hot like you did with Kaydel.”

“You don’t know that,” Rey insists. 

“They’re the paramount of unbiasedness and inaction when it comes to base level desires, you know this. It’s basic history,” Rose reminds her.

“No one can resist me, Rose.”

“Sometimes I wonder if you’ve just put a spell on everyone in the country.”

“I think my mother probably did that for me,” Rey jokes. She slips on a long sleeve mid-length black body con dress. 

Rose makes a disapproving tick. 

“What? It goes past my knees and there’s no cleavage.”

“If you were wearing underwear I could see every line,” Rose points out.

“Good thing I’m not,” Rey smirks. 

She fixes her hair and Rose fixes a bejeweled crown on Rey’s head. Five minutes after their arranged time, makes her way to the sitting room. 

Fashionably late, she reminds herself. _Make an entrance._

She pushes the doors and struts in, not missing a step. Until she locks eyes with whom she has to assume is the King’s Guard they sent to protect her -- but it can’t be. 

She always had thought King’s Guards were old and a little frail. Boring and unassuming. Ugly, even. 

This man was not. 

He was tall and muscular, she could tell even with his loose clothing. He had broad shoulders and there was a part of her that instinctively wanted to climb him like a tree. 

She resists, though. Instead she can’t stop looking at his face -- handsome as hell and expressive. She could tell he was trying to hide it, but he’s nervous and fidgeting. His hair goes past his ears and it’s an intentional tousled mess. 

_Shit_ , Rey thinks. 

_He’s hot._

“You must be the Princess,” Ben states.

He makes a conscious effort not to look her up and down. He notices her elaborate make-up and a crown that he knows must have cost more credits than he could dream of. Her eyes are bright and hazel, somehow foreboding and warm all at once. Ben knows her type -- nothing could catch her off guard and she’s the one running the show. 

If his uncle had told him the princess looked like _this_ , he wouldn’t have been apprehensive. He would have been all the way in. 

“I am. Princess Rey,” she extends her hand to him. He’s not quite sure what to do with it, but he bends forward and kisses her hand. 

She withdraws her hand and he stands upright. 

“You can call me Princess.”

“Of course.”

“And your name?” Rey prompts. 

“Oh, of course. Sorry. Ben Solo. You can...call me Ben,” he says. 

“Are you distracted, Ben? I don’t think it’s a good quality in a _bodyguard_ to be distracted.”

“No. Sorry, Princess.” He has a hard time containing his sarcasm, and he knows she must think he’s teasing her. 

“I expect you to be the best of the best. My grandfather said you were. He’s not known for being wrong, but let’s just say I haven’t always agreed with his opinions,” Rey says.

“I will ensure your safety, Princess. I take it very seriously.”

“My grandfather says he handpicked you.”

“I’m honored,” Ben states.

“Don’t be.”

He’s caught off-guard by her dry humor. 

Rey’s comm tablet goes off and they both break out of a trance. 

“Fuck,” she silences the alarm and sinks deep into a chair. 

“Princess?” 

“Yes, Ben?”

“It would be much easier if you would share your schedule with me so I know where you are,” he says.

“Of course. I’ll have Rose send it to you.”

“Thank you. Do you have somewhere to be?”

“Regent Snoke has requested my presence. I have to go. Please feel free to train in my training room, it’s on the 4th floor. I’m not sure when I’ll be done. If I need you, I’ll send you a message on the comms,” Rey says.

“I believe your grandfather intended for me to go wherever you go.”

“Not with Regent Snoke.” She’s serious. Hard-lined.

“Princess--“

“No,” she says authoritatively. “You cannot come. You cannot even stand outside. You cannot go near Snoke. He’d destroy you.”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t know Coruscantian magic. You’re a King’s Guard. In his eyes you’re weak. And you do not want to know what he does if he thinks you’re weak,” Rey says.

“I know Coruscantian magic.”

“What?” Rey’s shocked.

“That’s why they sent me. Why your grandfather picked me. It’s gotten me into trouble before, when I was younger. My mom was scared of it. Sent me to be with my Uncle Luke at the King’s Guard Academy to teach me out of it.”

“I always thought my grandfather would choose a hard-lined self-righteous asshole to protect me. Turns out he sent me a rebel with a penchant for pain?” Rey scoffs.

“Not anymore.”

“I need to go see Snoke now. But this conversation is not over, Solo. I’ll comm you when I’m done,” Rey tells him.

“As you wish, Princess.”

Ben watches Rey walk out of the room and he’s never been so certain that someone was going to drag him down to hell with them. He’s also never been more certain that he was going to gleefully let it happen. 

🥀🌹🥀

Rey dashes into Snoke’s training room, almost out of breath. 

“I apologize, Regent Snoke. I had to meet the new bodyguard from the King’s Guard.”

There’s nobody there.

“What...?”

A flash. 

_Pain._

Snoke isn’t there. Just the Knights. And they appear out of thin air and attack Rey. 

She gets her wits about her and starts firing off spells at them. She knows she injures one nearly gravely. She feels the adrenaline course through her veins when her spells land. 

Her bicep gets slashed badly and she screams. 

She uses the blood to create a loud and bright flash and exposes all of their positions. She attacks them with ease then, with only a few hits landing on her. She wonders if they were allowed to use lethal spells if she would have been dead by now. 

There’s a voice in her head that says, _no, you are your mother’s daughter. You will not die quietly._

She believes it. 

After she’s brought them down with a sedation spell, amplified by her blood, she yells for Snoke. It’s desperate and throaty. 

No response. 

She sighs and collapses on the ground. She crawls to her tablet and sends him a message. 

No response. 

Blood still spills from her arm and her leg. She tries a few spells but nothing works. She sends a notification to Rose, but it bounces back -- she’s in a meeting. 

Rey attempts to stand, but can hardly lift herself up. 

She sends a message to Ben. 

He arrives shortly after. 

He throws open the doors with Chandrilan magic. Rey knows, because it leaves a different feeling in the aftermath than Coruscantian magic. 

He kneels next to her. 

“What happened?”

“Snoke’s Knights. My lesson for the day,” Rey says through gritted teeth.

“You’re bleeding all over,” Ben observes.

“I’ve had worse. I just don’t have the strength to heal myself. It’s been a long week.”

“I understand.” He heals her with Chandrilan and Guardian magic, though for a fleeting moment he considers diving deep into his memories and accessing Coruscantian magic -- and there’s that insidious voice in his head that says _yes, do it. Give in._

He doesn’t. 

He heals her with ease and helps her up. He drops her hand like it pains him to touch her. Like it pains him to feel the remnants of the Coruscantian magic on her skin.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Princess.”

“Would you like to accompany me to dinner? We can finish our conversation from earlier,” Rey says.

“I believe that is my job.”

“I’m going to take a bath and get ready,” Rey tells him.

“I’ll escort you to your quarters.”

Rey’s emboldened and latches onto his arm and finds herself leaning too much as they ascend the stairs.

Ben deposits her at her door. 

“I’ll see you in a few hours, Princess. Comm me when you’re done.”

“Of course.”

Rey draws herself a bath and spends the time becoming angrier with Snoke. 

She should have known he was up to something -- she should have prepared better. And now that she knows Ben has dabbled in Coruscantian magic...she had to make sure he never met Snoke. Snoke would eat him alive. 

She dries off and touches up her hair and make up, opting for sleek blank pants and a dark red blouse. She sends Ben a comm and he knocks at her door soon after. 

Rey takes notice of his wandering eyes over her body when she opens the door. 

She flashes a knowing grin and takes his arm to walk down the staircase. 

“Do you still not feel well, Princess?” Ben asks.

“I feel fine, why?”

“You took my arm again.”

“Oh, perhaps I misread the situation,” Rey says darkly, her voice low and firm. She slips her hand out of his arm and walks down the stairs in front of him. She turns back to look at him and see the confusion on his face. He’s taken aback and seems to be processing her statement at a very slow ace.

“Princess--“

“--It’s okay, Ben. I understand. Not everyone can handle me.”

“Wait. I can handle you,” he says it too fast, and he curses under his breath. 

She reaches the bottom of the stairs and turns on the spot. 

He nearly runs into her, and he stumbles back onto the steps, stabilizing himself on the rail. 

“I’m not entirely sure of that, King’s Guard,” Rey says.

“I didn’t understand what you meant.”

“Again, I misread the situation. Not everyone can handle me. I doubt you’ll last two weeks before you go back home.” Rey’s eyes are narrow.

“I’ll be here until I figure out who was trying to kill you.”

“Sure,” she says as she turns around, heading down the hallway. 

“I need you to trust me, Princess,” Ben says.

“When you prove yourself to me I will.”

He grabs her wrist. She looks down at her wrist in his hand. She looks so small in comparison. Her breath hitches.

“Did I not already heal you?” Ben questions.

“My grandfather sent for you. I don’t trust him. I don’t trust you. You didn’t use Coruscantian magic to heal me.”

“I can’t let myself,” he says.

“Why? Are you so scared of me and my magic?” Rey snatches her hand back.

“I’m not scared of you. I’m scared of myself,” he admits.

“Ah. And that’s why you’re not good at Coruscantian magic. We use our anger and self-hatred to conquer our adversaries. You should try it sometime. You seem to have a lot of anger toward yourself.”

Ben’s silent. 

“Let’s eat,” she smirks. 

He follows behind her, clutching his fist and seething. 

He doesn’t talk to her during dinner. She talks sometimes and the grin never leaves her face. She seems to enjoy torturing him and angering him. 

_The Coruscantian way,_ he thinks to himself.

She lights a cigarette while they wait for dessert. 

“I always have dessert,” Rey comments. 

“Of course.”

She notices him stare at the cigarette. 

“What?”

“Aren’t those bad for you?” Ben questions. Judgement drips in his voice.

“God, you Chandrilans have no regards for pleasure in life, do you?” Rey scoffs.

“We do. Just not _that_ kind of pleasure that can kill you,” Ben replies.

“Ah. Where’s the fun in that?”

“I can think of a few things,” he matches her suggestive tone. 

Silence falls over the table when dessert comes out.

Ben thinks Rey deliberately licks her spoon _extra_ clean. He doesn’t say anything.

The walk up the stairs to their quarters was the longest walk of Ben’s life. 

When they reach Rey’s room, she finally speaks again.

“Tomorrow we’ll be attending the coven meeting. You’ll have to be there. It’s too public and exposed for me to go alone.”

“I understand.”

“You’ll be able to handle it, won’t you?” Rey goads him.

“I will, Princess. You underestimate me.”

“I hope I do, Ben. Good night.”

“Good night, Princess,” he says as she shuts the door behind her.

Ben doesn’t fall asleep for hours. His mind races and he tosses and turns as he has a nightmare. Voices in his head leading him toward evil. Toward Coruscant. Rey’s almost sinister look on her face telling him about using self-hatred to be more powerful. 

His alarm goes off before he feels like he’s slept even one hour. 

He checks his tablet and sees missed messages from Luke and immediately calls his uncle. 

“I hadn’t heard from you,” Luke says. 

“I’ve been busy.”

“Emperor Palpatine says he has a meeting with you this morning.”

“I do,” Ben replies.

“He says he hasn’t met you yet,” Luke states.

“He hasn’t.”

“So what have you been busy with?” Luke asks.

“Do you really think so low of me? I’m not a teenager. I know what I came here to do. I’ve been acquainting myself with the palace and the Princess and her staff.”

“Is she as bad as the rumors?”

“I don’t know yet. I’ll figure it out,” Ben says. He’s clearly annoyed.

“Ben?”

“Yes, Uncle Luke?”

“Have you heard any voices? Any nightmares?”

“No. None,” Ben states. He keeps his tone even.

“Good, good.”

Ben can tell Luke doesn’t believe him.

“I have to go get ready,” Ben tells his uncle.

“We’ll talk soon. Good luck.”

“Thank you.”

🥀🌹🥀

Ben makes his way to the Emperor’s study and adjusts his clothes over and over. He knows he has to make a good first impression. 

“Benjamin Solo, it’s so good to meet you.”

“Thank you, Emperor. I am honored to serve as the King’s Guard representative.”

“Sit down,” he gestures to the chair across from his desk. 

Ben looks around his study -- there’s shelves to the very tall ceilings with books and extravagant decorations all over. Even the chair Ben finds himself in is nicer than anything he’s ever experienced. 

“How was your first day in Coruscant?”

“Good,” Ben answers. He rests his hands on his thighs and wills himself not to fidget. 

“And my granddaughter?” Palpatine raises his eyebrows.

“She’s a bit of a spitfire, isn’t she?” Ben replies honestly.

The Emperor chuckles.

“Yes, she is. I suspect that is what Regent Snoke is trying to train her out of. Not doing too good of a job, is he?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Ben states. 

“Of course. I’m sure he’ll want to meet you soon,” Palpatine says.

“I’d be delighted,” Ben says.

“Has Rey mentioned anything about the attack?”

“Not really, no.”

“Did you have a chance to interview any of the staff?” Palpatine asks.

“A few. No one seems to know anything. I’m able to read minds clearly with Guardian magic if they don’t have Coruscantian protections.”

“Of course. I heard you do know some Coruscantian spells.”

Ben tightens the grip on his knees.

“A few.”

“I expect you to use them,” Palpatine tells him.

Ben’s face is stoic.

“I am hopeful you’ll figure it all out soon. And I’m hopeful my granddaughter may realize her new projects are not what the people want. It may be a wake up call for her to return to my principles and beliefs. Perhaps you can encourage her.”

“I’m not familiar enough with Coruscantian politics,” Ben remarks.

“Your mother would be disappointed. You know I served with her in the old senate, don’t you? I would have thought the son of Senator Organa would know better.”

“I am not my mother.” Ben tries to keep a level head.

“Clearly. I expect the staff interviews to be complete by the end of the week. And I expect some leads after that.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You’re dismissed, Benjamin. Say hello to your mother for me.”

Ben beelines for Rey’s training room. Of course the Emperor would bring up his mother. Of course he’d get inside Ben’s head. Luke probably told him too much. He’s so frustrated and angry after that conversation that he almost wants to channel that energy into his magic.

But he knows he shouldn’t give in that easily. So instead he spends hours jumping rope, hitting the punching bag, and running to calm himself down. He breathes heavily and lays down, letting his heart rate settle. The door opens with a thud and he sits up. 

Rey, dressed only in a black sports bra and black leggings. Her hair in three buns and her hands wrapped with black material.

“Oh. I didn’t know you were awake already,” Rey says.

“I had a meeting with your grandfather,” Ben stands and straightens his spine.

“Ah, that’s why you’re here.” 

“Yes.”

“He tends to have that effect on me as well,” Rey tells him.

“And Snoke?”

“We don’t need to talk about that. In fact, we won’t.”

“You’re that scared of him?” Ben challenges. 

“I’m not scared of anyone. They’re scared of me. And my power,” Rey says defensively. 

“You seemed scared of him.”

“Uneasy, I’ll give you that. I don’t trust him. Just like I haven’t decided if I trust you yet.”

“I’m certain I’ll earn your trust before I leave,” Ben replies.

“We’ll see about that.”

She brushes past him and their shoulders catch. He steadies himself and she wraps her hand around his forearm. 

“Sorry,” she apologizes, letting go of his hand too fast for his liking.

“It’s okay, Princess. I have to go anyway. Interview more staff.”

“I’ll see you this evening for the coven meeting. Maybe you’ll be able to prove King’s Guards are able to be passionate,” she winks at him as he leaves. His heart rate doesn’t slow for too long after that.

🥀🌹🥀

Rey walks into the boardroom with little fanfare. Rose sits alone, pouring over her comm tablet.

“Rose, did you find any information on my new bodyguard?” 

“Oh, so much,” Rose says. She’s been waiting for too long to spill.

“Tell me everything.”

“His mom is Leia Organa,” Rose replies.

“You’re kidding.”

“No.”

“Holy shit. He’s practically Chandrilan royalty then,” Rey realizes.

“Maybe you two fucking could unite Chandrila and Coruscant once and for all,” Rose teases. 

“ _Rose_ ,” Rey scolds. 

“I heard about your dinner conversation.”

“How?” Rey asks.

“People hear things. And people talk.”

“Oh.”

“Anyway, his uncle is the head of the King’s Guard. He was sent there like ten years ago when he got in trouble for using Coruscantian magic against someone in a fight. His mom made a deal to send him there instead of prison,” Rose informs Rey.

“ _This_ is the information I was looking for.”

“I figured you’d be interested in that.”

“Do you know where he is?” Rey asks.

“Last I heard he was in your training room.”

“Perfect,” Rey says.

“Rey?”

“Yes, Rose?”

“Don’t forget we have a meeting with the generals and advisors after coven,” Rose says.

“Will you take point on it, Rose? You’re the only one I trust.”

🥀🌹🥀

Ben dresses in all black. He knows it’s customary for Coruscantian witches and he didn’t want to stand out. His job was to stay on the sidelines and protect Rey. He didn’t want anything to get in his way. 

_Give into the evil. You know you want to taste the power of pain,_ a voice says in his head. He looks at himself in the mirror and resists the urge to slap himself in the face. Instead, he pushes the voice away and knocks on Rey’s door. 

He’s never been more aware that she is purposefully torturing him than when she answers the door. She wears a black dress that plunges low and his eyes dart from her cleavage to her ass back to her eyes. He had to focus.

“You dressed in black,” she says.

“I did. I know some customs.” 

“I heard from my Chief of Staff that your mom was a Senator,” Rey replies.

“She was. You had your Chief of Staff do research on me?” Ben looks incredulous.

“Had to know what I was getting myself into.”

“Do you mean with a bodyguard or...?” Ben starts.

“What do you want it to mean?”

“I--“

“Right,” she cuts him off.

“Princess,” Ben says. She puts up a finger to silence him. She touches his lips with her finger. He shivers. He notices her hands shake.

She tears away her hand before he can do anything.

“Let’s go,” she starts walking and he trails behind. 

When they arrive at the coven stead, it’s already begun. Ben glares at her, and Rey shrugs.

He should have known that she wanted to make an entrance. 

He stands off to the side, observing the group. No one seemed truly dangerous, but it’s clear Rey’s not the most popular person. Half of them seem intimidated by her and the other half seem annoyed with her. 

He understood both feelings. 

The hour passes by with Ben’s head screaming at him. The voice in his head encouraged him to join in the rituals. To abandon the peacekeeping mission he’s sworn to. To _hurt_ and be hurt. 

_By Rey’s hand, preferably,_ and that time it’s not the insidious voice. It’s his own baleful desires. 

He desperately wants to chant with the witches, to cast their spells and feel their pain. He doesn’t give into the voice, though. He tunes it out. He zones out completely. It’s his only way of self-preservation. 

He doesn’t come back to reality until he hears Rey yell his name and drags him out by grabbing the front of his shirt. 

He realizes they’re jogging away before he gains the presence of mind to ask what’s happening. 

“Rey!” Rose yells from behind them. 

“Later, Rose,” Rey practically snarls.

“What’s going on?” Ben asks in a daze. 

Rey pulls him into an alleyway. It’s dark and concealed. She performs a spell to block anyone from coming in, including Rose who’s fuming on the other side of the spell’s translucent curtain. 

She pushes him against the wall. His head spins.

“You wanted to join in. I felt your energy, your desire...”

“I did,” Ben admits. 

“That’s why you didn’t pay attention. You were afraid you’d lose yourself. Like you did in the fight that almost landed you in prison.” Rey connects the dots.

“How do you know about that?”

“I told you I had Rose do research on you.”

“You’re not wrong. I...There’s a voice inside my head, Rey. It calls to me to use Coruscantian magic. I can’t explain it. I know I sound crazy,” Ben sighs.

“You don’t. I understand. You’re not alone,” she says.

“Neither are you, Princess.”

“You missed an important conversation after,” she says.

“What was it?” Ben asks, fidgeting under Rey’s grasp.

“Maz Kanata. I know you know who she is.”

“I’ve heard of her.”

“She told me the rumors in Chandrila are that my grandfather ordered the hit against me. He wants to destroy me. He’s scared I’ll go against his plans,” Rey tells him.

“What?” Ben questions.

“I don’t know if it’s true. But if it is, there’s not many people I trust. I need to know you’re one of them.”

“I am, Princess. I don’t know your grandfather well, but I don’t like him and he sure as hell doesn’t trust me,” Ben says.

“Will you swear to me? Will you prove your loyalty?”

Ben considers the implications for a moment. He barely knows her. He has a job to do. Luke would be furious if he knew. But there’s something inside of him that’s drawn so deeply to Rey, that feels like he can always trust her, that her magic is within him already. 

“I will.”

Rey removes a small knife from her pocket. She pricks one of his fingers. She performs a spell. He swears his loyalty. He swears to protect her. 

Her fingers lace with his. She pushes them against the wall, her body pressed against his. She kisses him and his head continues to spin. Her mouth opens against his and he hears himself moan into her. 

Rey breaks the kiss and releases his hand without another word. She takes down the barrier between the alleyway and street. She reaches for Ben’s hand, and they walk together back to the palace.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments + kudos are very appreciated I love serotonin!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> finally earning those tags and the rating :))))))

“Why did you do that?” Rose interrogates them as they enter the palace. Ben drops Rey’s hand and returns to his professional stance. 

“Had to figure out if I could trust him after what Maz said.”

“Sure,” Rose says passively. 

“Are you jealous?”

“No,” Rose says. 

“Sure,” Rey fires back. 

Ben feels uncomfortable in his skin. 

“We’re going to be late for the meeting,” Rose announces.

“Then we better go, Rose.” Rey turns toward Ben and says, “I’ll come to your quarters after the meeting.”

“Uh--okay. Whatever you want, Princess.” He’s caught off guard at first and then he reminds himself to get it together. 

He’s Han Solo’s son first and foremost and he wouldn’t let a girl turn his brain to mush. 

He was stronger than that. 

He collapses on his bed and tries to process everything that’s happened in the past twenty-four hours, including desperately wanting to use Coruscantian magic and the taste of Rey lasting on his lips. 

It’s too much. 

He knows he should call Luke. Instead, he presses call on Poe’s profile. It seemed less daunting. 

“We assumed you died,” Poe jokes. 

“Sorry. It’s been kind of intense here.”

“What’s happening there?” Poe asks.

“Too much. Catch me up on what’s happening there instead,” Ben replies.

“You’re hiding something.”

“Poe.”

“I know when you’re lying.”

“ _ Poe _ ,” Ben stresses again. 

“Just tell me and I’ll tell you what I know,” Poe bargains

Ben knows he can’t tell Poe about the voices -- he might be his best friend but it’s still not good that it’s happening to Ben and Poe will absolutely tell Luke. 

“The princess kissed me,” Ben finally says.

“She kissed you?”

“Yes.”

“Who would have guessed royalty would be into you,” Poe gibes.

“Hey!”

“Have you seen your ears?” Poe snickers.

“Well, the princess was into it at the very least,” Ben says smugly.

“So you’re doing okay then?”

“I am,” Ben lies.

“Luke was worried.”

“I know,” Ben shifts uncomfortably. 

“Guess that was unfounded,” Poe says, but there’s something in his voice that Ben notates as suspicion. 

“Guess so.”

“Unless she’s courting you with Coruscantian magic.”

“She’s not,” Ben says too quickly.

“Okay.”

“Poe,” Ben begins. 

“I can’t believe you’re going to fuck the princess of Coruscant,” Poe laughs.

“I can’t either.”

“Don’t fall into it, Ben. I don’t care how pretty she is.”

“I won’t,” Ben promises.

He doesn’t tell Poe he already  _ has _ fallen. 

“Okay, now it’s my turn. There’s a new rebellion starting. In the outer worlds. They’re gonna try and take down both Chandrila and Coruscant.”

“Could that be who attacked Rey?” Ben asks. 

“No, I’ve been talking with someone who runs the rebellion. They’re almost certain that’s coming from within Coruscant, but they’re not mad about it exactly.” Poe pauses. “Sorry, I didn’t mean...”

“I know what you meant, Poe. Keep me updated on the rebellion. I have to go.”

Ben collapses back on his bed, more sure than ever that something was amiss in the Palpatine family. 

And he has no idea how he’ll protect Rey now.

🥀🌹🥀

Rose tries to get Rey to calm down. It does not go well -- for Rose, Rey, or the advisors. Rey uses blood magic to attempt to get them to tell the truth about her assassination attempt. About  _ why  _ they’re going to war again. About why any of this is happening. They block her spells with their own protections and Rose observes from the corner. 

It’s a bit unbelievable to Rey how completely alone she is now. 

But then again, they’ve always been her grandfather’s advisors. She’d just sat in his seat. 

Could she even trust Rose now?

She remains stoic as the advisors call in Regent Snoke to reign in Rey’s temper. 

She would not lose this round. 

Rey starts to before the conversation is over. 

She announces she’s leaving Rose in her stead. Let Rose figure out the logistics of war. Rose is smarter than her in that regard, anyway.

Rey couldn’t bring herself to care anymore. Part of her is convinced she’ll be dead in a week anyway. 

She takes note of Snoke’s disappointed expression in her early departure. 

She notices him pierce his palm. She can tell he’s trying to gain access to her mind. 

Rey attempts to block his intrusion but it’s mostly fruitless. She exits the room with little fanfare. The further she gets from the boardroom she feels his grasp on her mind lessen. She pricks her finger and completes a protection spell. 

She slumps down against the wall and lets the tears fall. 

🥀🌹🥀

Ben swallows his pride and calls his uncle. 

“Been waiting to hear from you, kid.”

“Yeah, I know,” Ben replies. 

“How is everything going?” Luke asks. 

“Fine, for the most part,” Ben lies. 

“Has the Princess tried to bite you yet?” Luke jokes.

Ben’s voice comes out as more of a squeak. “What? No.”

“Relax, it was a joke.”

“Right,” Ben says as his heart rate slows.  _ He wishes she’d have bitten him. He’d thank her. _

“What have you found out?” Luke inquires. 

“I...I think it was her grandfather. I think it was Palpatine,” Ben admits.

“What?” 

“I think her grandfather is trying to kill her.” It’s a relief to say it out loud to someone. 

“That’s a hell of an accusation, Ben. And why would he hire someone from the King’s Guard?” Luke offers. 

“To cover his tracks. You can’t tell me you weren’t thinking this is a possibility. I’ve heard the rumors from Chandrila,” Ben accuses. 

“How have you heard any rumors from Chandrila?” 

“Poe,” Ben answers. It’s useless to lie. 

“Ah.” Luke pauses. There’s silence. Ben doesn’t hang up. He hears Luke start a sentence and stop. 

Finally, he speaks. “You should come home, Ben. I think you’re falling in too deep. You don’t want to get caught up in something you can’t fix or run away from.”

“I’m tired of running. I’m tired of not being useful. I’m tired of being someone’s pawn,” Ben laments.  _ I’m tired of the voices in my head. I’m tired of you lying to me.  _

_ I want to be free.  _

Ben knew what he had to do. He hung up the call with Luke and checked his tablet for Rey’s schedule and made his way to the lower levels of the palace. 

🥀🌹🥀

“Rey -- I need to talk to you.” His voice is rough and frantic. He rounds the corner and expects to see her stalking down the halls coming from her meeting. He had checked her schedule and knew she’d be leaving any moment. 

Instead he finds her on the floor, knees to her chest. 

He swears he sees a glimmer of tears in her eyes.

“Rey?” He softens his tone. He crouches down next to her so their eyes are level. She looks away. 

“I can’t right now,” Rey responds. 

He places his thumb on her cheek and makes her look him in the eye. 

“What happened?”

“Ben, please,” she says sternly. Almost back to her normal tone. 

“I’m your  _ bodyguard,  _ Rey. I need to know if someone hurt you.”

“No one hurt me,” she says defensively. 

“I don’t believe you. You were crying in the hallway,” Ben points out. 

“And now I’m not. Let’s go,” she says as she gets up and straightens out her shirt and jacket. 

“Where?”

“Come on,” Rey says as she drags Ben down the hallway. 

“Where are we going?” Ben reiterates.

“I need to fight,” Rey replies.

“So you’re going to fight me?”

Rey stops in the middle of the hallway. She turns to face him, her face solemn. 

“You’re the only one who can keep up that I trust,” she admits.

“Okay.” Ben breathes deeply and takes one of her hands in his. “Okay, Princess. Let’s go so you can kick my ass.”

She sets up the training room to her liking. She strips down to her leggings and a sports bra. Ben takes off his shirt. They both have a hard time keeping their eyes off of each other. 

In fact, Ben has to concentrate  _ incredibly  _ hard to be an even match for Rey. 

And even then, Chandrilan magic was barely a match for the type of blood magic Rey was wielding. She knocked him on his ass too many times to count. 

He wasn’t totally losing though. She weakened herself with the amount of blood spilled. He got a few good hits in. 

And there was a moment he almost let himself attempt to breach her mind. To confuse her. A tactic from the voice in his head. But he shakes it off. 

She cuts his arm and he finally yields. 

She heals it almost immediately. There’s something too intimate about it. He sits on a table and they’re at eye level again. Her hands on his arm. Her chest rising and falling too quickly. Her skin is pale, drained from the blood she lost in their training session. He still thinks she’s the most beautiful person in the world. 

He still considered himself lucky. His other hand wraps around her waist and strokes the small of her back. She finishes healing the cut and wraps her hands around his neck. 

“Don’t start something you won’t finish,” Rey warns. “I couldn’t handle that, Ben.”

“Princess, I’m not sure what you mean.” He settles her between his thighs. Both his hands around her waist.

“Don’t, Ben. Please,” she says. 

“I made an oath to you, Rey. I intend to keep it,” he tells her and he kisses her. 

She pulls back and Ben thinks he’s fucked something up irreparably. Maybe Poe was right -- he should face the fact that he had no business kissing a princess. 

She locks eyes with him and her hands cup his face. 

“I want you to fuck me, Ben. Get on your knees and eat me out,” she orders. She sits down in the chair and her eyes continue to pierce his. She’s serious. He’s mesmerized.

He smiles. And obeys. 

He would do what Rey says forever. 

It  _ was _ the blood oath he took, after all. 

He gets on his knees before her. 

She lifts her hips up and he slides off her leggings. 

Rey settles back into the chair and spreads her legs. 

Ben kisses the inside of her thighs. His breath is hot on her skin and she squirms. 

He continues to tease her until she’s begging him to touch her cunt. 

He licks up her folds and his nose grazes her clit. It’s not exactly begging, what she’s asking for Ben realizes. She’s  _ telling _ him what to do. And it satisfies something deeply within him, to be buried in Rey’s cunt and told what to do. He doesn’t have to think about  _ anything  _ except Rey’s pleasure and satisfying her. And he knows he can do that. 

His tongue circles her clit and his fingers start to curl inside her. It’s almost holy — the way he worships her with his tongue. The way she lets him. The closest he can get to salvation is a dark Princess coming on his tongue, clenching around his fingers, and crying out his name. 

She pulls him up by the collar and stands up. She kisses him and tastes herself on his tongue. She tugs on his belt and pulls down his pants. He shuffles out of them and she pushes him down to sit on the chair. He’s already hard and stroking his cock. She takes his hand away from his cock and straddles him. 

She sinks down on him and takes his length inch by inch, tantalizingly slow. 

He starts to thrust up but she  _ tsks  _ and places her hands on his chest. 

“Not yet, Ben.”

“I thought you wanted me to fuck you,” Ben says. His voice is tight and he’s struggling. 

“I think you could learn some patience. And I like watching you squirm. I like watching you wait,” she says with an evil grin. She remains immobile. Her cunt clenches around his cock. He  _ desperately  _ wants to fuck her. 

“Fuck, Princess. You’re torturing me.”

“That’s the point,” she says. 

“Can I kiss you at least?” He pleads. 

“Hmmmm. I don’t know if you’ve earned that quite yet,” Rey muses. 

“What can I do, Princess?”

“Why didn’t you use any Coruscantian magic today?” She asks. He tries not to move. Not to shift away. His cock aches inside her. He looks away, but she grabs his face and squeezes his cheeks so he can’t look away. 

“Answer me,” she commands. 

“I didn’t know if I could control myself. I didn’t know how far I’d go. I didn’t want to hurt you,” he confesses. 

“I want you to hurt me, Ben. I want you to lose control. I want to see every part of you,” Rey tells him. 

“Princess…” He’s trying so hard not to let his cock soften inside her. He’s trying so hard to be good for her. 

It's torturous. Minutes pass. Ben thinks it might be an eternity. He's not sure. She won't let his gaze stray from her face. He wants to be good. He wants to stay hard for her. He starts to shake a bit.

“Let go, Ben.” She leans forward and he grunts. His cock strains. She kisses his neck and whispers it again in his ear. 

“Anything for you,” he replies. 

“You can fuck me now,” Rey tells him and he wastes no time beginning to thrust into her. She bounces on his cock, setting the pace. He reaches forward to touch her breasts and he touches every inch of her he can. She plays with her clit and brings herself to orgasm again. Ben thought there was nothing more holy than Rey coming on his tongue -- but he was wrong. It’s Rey coming apart on his cock, hands around his neck. 

“Come inside me, Ben. You can do it,” she says breathlessly. 

It doesn’t take him long after she grants him permission. He leans back in the chair after his come fills her, his breath ragged. She tucks his hair behind his ears and kisses his neck, chest, and cheek before his lips. He’s in a haze.

Rey climbs off his lap and grabs a towel from the cabinet behind them and cleans herself off. She gets dressed and sorts herself out in a mirror.

“Next time, Ben.” She walks back over to him and comes up behind him, her hands explore his chest. “Don’t hold back. I can hold my own.”

“I’m supposed to protect you,” Ben says. 

“I don’t need to be protected by you. I need to know I can trust you. I need to know you’ll stand by my side.”

“Always, Princess.”

“Come to my room tonight after everyone is asleep, Ben. Can you do that?” 

“Yes,” he replies. Ever the obedient bodyguard. 

“Good boy,” she says and she kisses his cheek before she leaves the training room without a further word, leaving Ben to sink back further into the chair. 

_ What the fuck had he gotten himself into? _

🥀🌹🥀

Rose debriefs Rey over dinner about what happened after she left. 

Rey doesn’t listen. Instead she thinks about the way Ben’s mouth felt on her cunt. How she’s never wanted to run away with someone more. 

How she’s never wanted someone to relish in her power like he does. How she’s never wanted to share a throne with someone before. 

Benjamin Solo has turned her entire life upside down. But somehow she’s certain that he’s made her more assured of herself and her magic. She wouldn’t let anyone keep her down. 

And that’s why she doesn’t care what Rose thinks of Snoke’s plans. What Chandrila is doing. 

Rey could destroy it all. 

And maybe she would. 

Rey excuses Rose much earlier than she should. 

Rey decides she’d wear a see-through lace nightgown. Torture Ben even more. 

Time passes almost  _ too  _ slowly until she hears a knock on her door. She hesitates for a moment before opening the door. She remembers what happened with Bazine and how careless she’d been. Ben must have sensed her trepidation because he knocks softly and says, “it’s me” against the door. 

She opens the door and he attempts to not completely stare at her naked body through the lace. He tries to stay glued to her eyes but she loves the wandering eyes. 

Rey’s a Princess. She’s always had people stare at her. She’s always been the center of attention. She relishes in it. 

There’s something different about the way Ben looks at her. The way he perceives her. There’s no doubt in Rey’s mind that he sees through her looks and facade -- he might as well think she’s the only person in the world. 

“Oh, do you like this nightgown, Ben?” 

“You know I do. How could I not?” Ben says. He reaches for her hand but she pulls it away and smiles at him. 

“I’m very tired, Ben. Come to bed with me,” Rey says. 

“God. How did I get so lucky?” 

“I can’t believe I have my grandfather to thank for this,” Rey says. Ben rolls his eyes and obediently follows Rey to her bedroom. He swallows and pushes his conversations with Luke and Poe to the back of his mind -- what matters right here and now is Rey.

She’s softer with him this time. She doesn’t tease him as much. She lets him fuck her right away. It’s intimate and soft. Ben takes off her nightgown and tosses it to the side. He worships her body and she worships him. He hooks her legs over his shoulders and hits the deepest part of her as she whimpers and moans his name. He kisses her neck and ears and cheeks and lips and he makes her come on his cock for the second time in one day. 

He comes on her breasts and nearly expires on the spot when he watches her run one of her fingers over his come and lick her finger seductively and ends with a small  _ pop. _

“ _ Rey _ ,” Ben exclaims. 

“What?” She asks innocently. 

“You have no idea what you do to me,” Ben says as he shakes his head. 

“Oh, Ben. So innocent. I know  _ exactly  _ what I do to you,” she replies. 

“I should have heeded all the advice I’ve heard my whole life. Coruscantian witches  _ are  _ evil.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. Now go grab a towel so you can clean me off,” she instructs. 

After he cleans her off and she gets ready for bed, he holds her tight against his chest and kisses the top of her head. 

“You know, it _is_ easier to protect you if I sleep here,” Ben comments. Bold as hell. How very  _ Solo  _ of him.

“I can’t believe we didn’t think of it sooner. But you were terrified of your feelings,” Rey says. 

“I wasn’t terrified,” Ben defends. 

“Everyone is always terrified of me. You’re the only one I’ve let in,” Rey admits. 

Ben glances down at her. She looks up. He kisses her forehead. 

“Good night, Princess.”

“It’ll be a good night because you’re next to me,” she says. 

Ben makes sure Rey’s sound asleep before he lets himself drift off into a deep sleep.

Ben gains enough confidence to broach the subject he’d been dancing around after they start to get ready for the day. Rey has a meeting with her grandfather and he has to tell her. She has to be prepared just in case her grandfather tries something. 

“Princess?” He broaches. 

“Yes, Ben?” Rey replies. Her voice is high and sweet. It’s early in the morning and they both have barely spoken. It’s endearing and makes Ben’s ears red because he thinks she’s so damn  _ cute. _

“I have something important to say,” Ben starts. 

“You love fucking me? You want to spend the day with your face buried against my cunt?”

Ben’s cheeks flush. 

“Well -- yes, but that’s not it. It’s serious.”

“What is it?” Rey sobers up quickly. 

“About who ordered the assassination attempt,” Ben says. 

“Did one of the staff finally talk?” Rey questions. 

“I think it was your grandfather. And I think you already knew that,” Ben confesses.

“It’s not him, Ben,” Rey says and shakes her head. 

“He has the most to gain. He hates you. He hates everything you’ve stood for. He hates everything you’ve done to Coruscant,” Ben continues.

“Stop it, Ben. Shut up.” Rey’s face is red. She blinks back tears.

“Rey, you know it’s true. I  _ know _ you can feel it.”

“Stop talking.”

“You have to admit it to yourself.” Ben crosses closer to her and tries to put his arms around her. She shoves him away. 

“Leave. Now,” she commands. 

He pleads with her now. He forcibly turns her so she’s facing him. 

“Please be careful, Rey. I know you’ve thought about this. I know you don’t think I’m crazy. Stop lying to yourself.”

“Leave, Ben. And don’t bring this up again until you’ve found the actual person trying to kill me.”

She says it with such finality Ben wonders if he’s fucked this whole thing up. The only good thing in his life. He walks away and closes her door with care. He collapses on his bed and hopes he can somehow prove to Rey what they both know -- or figure something out. He can’t go back to the King’s Guard now. He can’t go to Chandrila. 

He had reached the point of no return. He just had to make sure Rey was with him.

🥀🌹🥀

Rey dodges Rose’s questions about why Ben was seen coming out of Rey’s room early in the morning. Rey also dodges questions about why she seems so on edge. 

She would never admit it’s because Ben actually put words behind what Rey’s been afraid of for months. 

Rey can’t push it outside of the forefront of her mind as her grandfather and Snoke give her updates on the war efforts. 

She’s scared to disagree with any of their actions. 

And when she arrives early to training with Snoke and she hears her grandfather telling Snoke to ensure there’s no way this plan fails. He won’t tolerate failure any longer. 

Rey greets them both and her grandfather leaves without a word.

“Today will be non-traditional training. Back to our roots,” Snoke informs her. 

Rey nods. 

Snoke waives his hand and Rey’s placed under a deep sleep before she even sets foot in the training room. 

She wakes up in No Man’s Land. Disoriented. Tired.

Alone. 

No spellbooks. No one to help her. 

Just a forest.

God knows what is lurking around every corner. 

She needs to find something to pierce her skin. She needs to be ready to use blood magic at any cost.

Rey finds a suitable stick and starts to saw off the end against a tree to make it sharper. 

Just in time to stick herself and utilize a spell against a demon that appears to her. 

She runs deeper into the forest. It’s probably a bad move. She can see Snoke and his favorite demons across the way. She needed leverage and to get to higher ground. She had to figure out where in No Man’s Land she was and a plan to get home. She’d done this before. 

It’s Snoke’s favorite way to try to break someone. 

But Rey is unbreakable. 

She learned that from her mother. 

Rey would survive. 

It’s what she’s best at.

🥀🌹🥀

Logically, Ben knows Rey isn’t speaking to him because he offended her. Because she asked him to stay away. They got too close and burned each other. 

Irrationally, he’s concerned he hasn’t seen her all day. She should have sought him out by now. He should have received a report from some of the staff about her movements around the palace. 

So he seeks out Rose. It takes him far too long to find her as well, and he’s out of breath when he finally finds her. 

“Rose, where’s Rey?” Ben tries to keep his voice level. He has to be professional. He has to keep his cool. 

“She had training with Snoke on her schedule. She’s late for our meeting with Kaydel though, I’m not sure if she’s still with him,” Rose responds.

“Thank you,” Ben replies and runs off without further conversation. 

He arrives at the training room but finds it empty. He searches for Snoke’s assistants and when he finds them, they refuse to tell Ben where Rey is. 

He doesn’t want to use Coruscantian magic. He doesn’t want to fall into that hole. But Rey could be in danger or  _ dead  _ and he didn’t have much choice. He breaches one of their minds and finds out that Snoke has taken Rey to No Man’s Land. 

Sealing the fate of her death. 

He wastes no time preparing to leave. He does not feel bad about tricking and lying to get transport there. He doesn’t care about anything except Rey’s safety. 

Ben arrives in No Man’s Land with little more than one of Rey’s spellbooks. 

He has no plan. No real weapons. 

For the person supposed to be her bodyguard rescuing her, Ben Solo was out of his depth. 

And then he sees it. He sees  _ him.  _ The masked man. His small army. Headed for where he assumes Rey is located. 

It’s the man from his dreams. And as the man unmasks his face, Ben realizes he knows who the man is. He knows the voice in his head. He knows who has tried to influence him to the dark all these years. 

It’s Regent Snoke.

The color drains from Ben’s face. 

Of course. 

Everything makes sense. 

He’s been manipulated by Palpatine and Snoke for as long as he can remember. 

It’s why they requested him. 

It’s been their plan all along.

He wouldn’t let them win now. 

Ben ensures Snoke and his demons don’t sense his presence and he makes his way into the woods. 

He’s not sure how long he walks around for but he kills enough demons that he’s teeming with dark energy from using blood magic. He can sense Snoke leaves No Man’s Land. He can sense they think Rey’s died. 

But she hasn’t. Ben thinks he would know. He  _ has  _ to have faith. 

Or else he’d just let a demon take him.

It’s dark. It’s bleak. He’s on edge. 

He starts calling out her name. A plea. Begging. 

_ Please let the universe grant us grace.  _

“Rey!” Ben calls. 

Rey breaks from her haze in her makeshift shelter. She’s used too much of her blood against the demons. She knows they think she’s dead. No one lasts more than a day in the forest alone. 

But Rey is not no one. 

She’s getting weary, though. Which is why when she hears someone call her name she’s convinced she’s hallucinating. But she’s not. It’s  _ Ben.  _ Here to save her. Maybe she’d make him realize he was sent to her so he could rule with her. 

Rey Palpatine would destroy everything. 

She swears that to herself. 

She tries to seal it with a spell but cannot muster the strength. She thinks she’s hallucinating again. She’s finally succumbing to No Man’s Land. She’s certain of it, because she thinks she sees Ben rush over to her. She passes out in his arms. 

If death looks like Ben Solo, so be it.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments + kudos rly brighten my day 🥺🥺🥺🥺

**Author's Note:**

> follow me on [twitter](https://www.twitter.com/literallynooc)and check out the rest of my works for (mostly) smutty one-shots and one canon divergence AU :)


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